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Age of Turmoil
The Golden Age of Masaru is a time well-documented and well researched and referenced. However, the Age of Turmoil - the common naming for the last decade or so of the Golden Age - is a period of history that remains bleak and uncharted. I was drafted by the Central 46, even in retirement, to compile my knowledge; I, among a handful of others, am a survivor of the Age of Turmoil. I was an officer of the 2nd Division while the honorable Shinkou-soutaichou was still in office until just recently, when I retired last year as the newest leaders of the Gotei settled in under Faust-soutaichou. This index is to serve those born within the last decade, or even century, in their quest for a more complete understanding of the decline of Shinkou’s reign, as well as the terrible sorrow and atrocities of the Mask War. This should not be looked to for encouragement, but instead looked to for the truth; those looking for a bias will find themselves starving. And without further ado, the Index itself; The Siege of Seireitei Though regarded by many as the start of the Age of Turmoil, this event is merely the second strike of the Age of Turmoil; the first chaotic upbringings of these events were within the shadows of history, where not even our expert probes may hear hints of their subtle destruction.Thus, this Index is confined to researching the Siege. The Siege itself started as a surprise attack by Hollow forces upon Seireitei’s whole. A strike force was sent in from the Southwest of seemingly large strength; that of two or three Divisions. Shinkou rallied his Captains in a meeting and they decided that it was not a main force, and so the speed-based 4th Division spearheaded a multi-Divisional force to clear that, while the strongest Divisions (and the defensive 13th Division) stayed within Seireitei in case another attack struck. Another attack did strike, and with numbers no one’s nightmare could have envisioned. The scene was truly something out of a nightmare; Hollows running rampant in Rukongai, the Court Guardians could only defend Seireitei’s expanse, not strong enough to hold back the tides of the Hollows from Rukongai. Schism hollows, which have hereafter been expertly researched, allowed Hollows to break the Bloodstone barriers. It was the first time Hollows had touched Seireitei’s expanse. Ever. The Gotei, as most victims of surprise attacks are, were floundered at first. But the superior leadership and strength of the Captains Shinkou had appointed quickly grounded the defenders and the enemy was pushed back. Shinkou and his men then fought briefly against creatures not seen perfected in all of history; Arrancar, claiming to be part of an ‘Espada’ (which means ‘sword’; though it is written with the kanji ‘jyuugatana’; suggesting there are ‘ten swords’, or, ‘ten Espada’). These Espada were superior to the Captains, but their numbers were lacking in the invasion; Captains in pairs, or even groups of three, pushed back the Espada and claimed a tentative victory. The affects of the Siege have been seen in history ever after; the Bloodstone barriers have been improved upon and refined under the various Research and Development divisions, using data from Schism hollows. Also, all Divisions have a cohesive emergency defense plan, drafted by the Captain, in case of such a surprise attack. The crater of ‘Kanda’ was created by the Captain Dirge Melian disobeying orders and activating her destructive Ban Kai outside of Seireitei soil. Additionally, and the most important of which, was the attachment that all shinigami suddenly had with Shinkou Masaru. It was within this conflict that the man’s legendary, even mythological, genius was revealed. He was charming, handsome, and strong; but never had he been so tested that the fullest extent of his powers had surfaced. And so, within the Siege, the Gotei saw a hero that they could all relate to, follow, and perhaps even, idolize. Sine Qua Non While the Gotei saw Shinkou as a hero, Rukongai differed greatly; it had suffered immense damage at the hands of the Hollows. Seireitei dispatched squads of shinigami to roam and purge the Hollows from Rukongai, but the shinigami would just as often get into trouble as they would find a Hollow. And so, public approval for the Gotei dropped as a whole. The Central 46 also lost its approval for the Gotei when Masaru quickly presented a plan they called ‘Masaru’s Folly’; a quick-strike attack into Hueco Mundo with almost the entire Gotei, to eradicate the Espada and end their future machinations. One of the Central 46 representatives laughed in Shinkou’s face when he presented this, thinking it was a joke. As Masaru campaigned for a counterattack, the Central 46 ignored him, leaving only Rukongai to suffer. Incidentally, the least frustrated of the Districts were the poorest; as they lived lives of terrible crime and robbery, they had crude weapons and the killer instinct to live through the Hollow assault. A recent survey done by the 2nd Division showed that Hollows actually fled from the poorest Districts, because those who lived there were far more likely to fight back than they were to run. As they pushed back roaming Hollow after roaming Hollow, the poorest Districts began to develop a certain hubris. This hubris was rallied by various men at different points in time, but eventually it fell under the umbrella of the ‘Sine Qua Non’ (the translation is ‘without which there is nothing’, or ‘that which needs to exist for anything’). The Sine Qua Non (hereafter ‘SQN’) started as a group of men who had survived the Hollows and became a militia. Their intentions started honorably; with a stated mission statement of ‘to protect Rukongai when Seireitei can’t’. Yet the mission statement was quickly warped by ‘to protect Rukongai because Seireitei can’t’ by a few leaders who took charge of the SQN. The SQN attracted rogue shinigami at impossible speeds, and an army was born within a few months. Their strength ranged from the weakest plus to above Vice Captain level (the infamous ‘Lieutenants’, amongst whom was Asakura Sumiteru, current 7th Division Captain). They did not act, however, on their anti-Seireitei impulse until beckoned forth by a shadowy ally that would only betray them; the Espada. The Espada orchestrated for four humans, four ‘Ryoka’ indoctrinated through propaganda of very high strength, to enter Seireitei and attempt to kill Shinkou. As they infiltrated Seireitei, barely detectable and hard to chase, the SQN would create a terrible chaos and give the Ryoka a chance to strike the Soutaichou. This plan worked perfectly, had the Ryoka been dumber. Along the journey, a few Ryoka gleaned that the propaganda was incorrect, and their strength was not at full. The Espada, frustrated, struck at Seireitei as well, showing their faces in order to try and rally the SQN and Ryoka. This backfired, however, when a few Espada attempted to slay the Ryoka. The Espada were pushed back by the Ryoka and Captains, and fled quickly, having vested little effort in the process. The SQN itself was left to flounder under the whims of the Gotei, which were not forgiving; seeing this, most men surrendered on the spot. Most SQN prisoners were subjected to the Senzaikyuu to both deteriorate their powers, and also to serve as a central hub for interrogation. The Fall As the questioned SQN operatives revealed more and more, eventually the involvement of the Espada became perilously clear. Rei Jiiro, the 2nd Division Captain, brought Shinkou and a lieutenant to the Central 46 after hearing of the Espada’s involvement, and forced him to confess under sword point. Shinkou, who later reprimanded the Captain in private, then used this information and reports of renewed public approval for the Gotei after new reconstruction efforts to found his claims for a counterattack. A few months later, he was given permission to strike. Shinkou knew that he would not be able to simply rush into Hueco Mundo and attack; even the brutish Hollows had employed strategy. He visited Hueco Mundo various times, and according to urban legend he brought key subordinates to help him discuss strategy, in order to better understand the terrain they would fight on. Eventually, Shinkou’s famous ‘Javelin’ strategy prevailed. The strategy, which involved a singular force pushing inwards to a fortress and blitzing the fortress with Captains, was risky. Many scoffed at the idea when it was presented, but Shinkou’s leadership during the Siege made them respect the plan; this is what both saved and doomed the Gotei. They struck inwards and, after three hard days of constant battle, reached the fortress. The Captains entered, leaving their Vice Captains and 3rd Seated Officers in charge, giving them orders to hold the line between the portal and the fortress, and they never came out. There were immense flashes of reiatsu, and the Gotei finally fled when the fortress collapsed upon itself. The Vice Captains rallied the whole of the Gotei back to the portal, where they returned to Seireitei. The battle was both a terrible failure and a great success; while all of the Captains perished, they also killed all the Espada. Additionally, the Gotei itself sustained light losses compared to the damage they had done to the organized Hollow army’s rank-and-file. With the knowledge of their cursed success on their shoulders, the Vice Captains assembled before the Central 46, only one of them blessed enough to have a shred of his Captain’s haori to cling to. The following is the official casualty report given to the Central 46 by Vice Captain of the 3rd Division, Sayuri Chikako. Casualties [ Killed in Action] * Shinkou Masaru - 1st Division * Jiiro Rei - 2nd Division * Meseikimu Kanshoku - 3rd Division * Seisatsu Kuragari - 4th Division * Yukiko Murray- 5th Division * Akuma no Jubei - 6th Division * Saiyoisen - 7th Division (Killed During the Siege of Seireitei, but due to the plethora of events occurring at this time, is listed here) * Fenre, Kyin - 8th Division * Terada Junichi - 9th Division * Kenzo Matsumoto - 10th Division * Torres-Cofresi, Diega - 11th Division * Daymea, Kento - 12th Division * Melian, Dirge - 13th Division (Killed During the Siege of Seireitei, but due to the plethora of events occurring at this time, is listed here) Reconstruction Most of the Vice Captains were given Taishuu examinations and promoted within weeks. A new wave of leadership swept through the Gotei 13, but the position of Soutaichou was left empty intentionally; both the Central 46 and the Gotei 13 agreed that the Gotei had to be at a satisfactory power level before a Soutaichou could be chosen. If an emergency were to occur, then one of the Captains would be given ‘honorary leadership authority’, already chosen by the Central 46; this identity was kept secret in case any factions would attempt to assassinate that Captain in particular. The following is a table outlining the promoted Captains and their positions. Promoted Captains * Taiken Yuusuke - 2nd Division * Sayuri Chikako - 3rd Division * Shouyuu Yasougin - 4th Division * Maisaku Hiana - 5th Division * Iwakami Katsu - 6th Division * Idaten Takero - 7th Division * Venkar, Zalin - 8th Division * Hisame Tenshirou - 9th Division * Jinsoku - 10th Division * Ono Masuto - 11th Division * Faust, Gabriel - 12th Division * Senbokuji Ame - 13th Division The Gotei 13 was built mostly upon the standards which Masaru had coveted and implemented, with personal variations according to the new Captains. While the whole of the Gotei itself had remained alive, the Captains were not looked to with respect; instead, with tentative wonder. And so, the ‘reconstruction’ was a period where Captains attempted to ratify their position through strength or other methods. The Central 46 was changing as well; with the new political dynamics of the weaker Captains, houses once in power found themselves slightly weaker than before. Thus, without the Gotei even knowing, the face of the Central 46 changed almost overnight when the elections came around. This change in power is often hypothesized as a coup by the powers that would force the Mask War. The Mask War Many months after the Reconstruction period began, the Central 46 called an emergency meeting of the Captains. Gathering all together, the Central 46 then presented that they believed the time was appropriate to choose a Soutaichou. While most Captains agreed to this, a few did not agree to the candidate; Arihito Muramatsu. Muramatsu had been the Vice Captain of Shinkou Masaru, and while he was aged and experienced, many thought he lacked the strength to be a Captain, let alone the Commander Captain. A few Captains spoke out against this choice, others kept quiet, others approved, and a small minority rebelled. Those that rebelled included the Captains of the 11th, Ono Masuto, 9th, Hisame Tenshirou, the 5th, Hiana Maisaku, the 13th, Senbokuji Ame, and the Captain of the 12th Division, Gabriel of the House of Faust. The first blood was that of the Captain of the 13th Division, Senbokuji Ame, who attempted to kill Muramatsu after it was clear the Central 46 had no intention of repealing their decision. All of the other Captains had left, save for the Captain of the 4th Division, Shouyuu Yasougin and Muramatsu himself. The Captain attempted to strike Muramatsu in a rushed assassination, screaming ‘I am to be the next Commander Captain!’, but Yasougin beheaded him on the spot. News of this spread, and the 13th Division as a whole rebelled and joined forces with the departed Captains. The rebels, who called themselves ‘La Lluvia’, all had varying reasons for rebelling; Ono rebelled in the name of former 11th Division Captain Diega Torres-Cofresi, who had been the strongest Captain before she had died in the Fortress, saying that Muramatsu’s strength was paltry and he would be manipulated or killed within days. Yazama was part of Torres-Cofresi’s clan, and so he joined forces with Ono. Hiana Maisaku’s reasons are less apparent, but it is believed she was romantically involved with Yazama and didn’t wish to fight him. The Captain of the 13th never spoke out his reasons for rebelling (though his subordinates rebelled in his name), though Shouyuu Yasougin and the claims of those nearby who heard is call say it was for personal greed. Faust never publicly spoke on his reasons for rebelling, other than he believed something was ‘off’. Almost all of the rebelling Captain’s Division members left to support their leaders, and a few from other remaining Divisions as well. The ensuing battles are the bloodiest in all of the Gotei’s history; more shinigami have died in these events than in the Siege and strike on Hueco Mundo combined. Many regard the Mask War as the ‘War of Atrocities’, or ‘War of Fallen Brotherhood’. Many attempts have been made by this book’s author to comment on the War, but he refuses to talk of the War. It is very well known, however, that Faust took command of La Lluvia, while the Gotei’s remaining forces had no clear leader. The first strike was not completed by either of the forces, but instead another; Seisatsu Kuragari, a Captain under Shinkou (formerly of the 4th Division) returned to Seireitei in rags and wished to be let into Seireitei. They appointed him as the Inquisitor of the Central 46. He demanded all remaining forces to pledge their loyalty to the Central 46, and most did; however, the Vice Captain of the 2nd Division, Spora Sophia, refused to do so without her Captain present (Taiken Yuusuke was away on an extended mission), and was shot. Taiken quickly returned to Seireitei, finding the situation grave. He attempted to diffuse what he could, but arrived in time only to be attacked by La Lluvia. The attack was a systematic multilateral attack by the differing forces in order to disrupt various objectives; it was clearly established by loyalist forces that Faust was leading La Lluvia. His attack was aimed to cripple the remaining forces, but it was beaten back with heavy casualties to both sides. Shouyuu Yasougin organized a counterattack with the Taiken Yuusuke, sending a quick-strike force (headed by Shouyuu) followed by a ‘main force’ (headed by Taiken) to attack the fleeing rebels. Shouyuu intercepted the rebels at Kanda while Taiken was intercepted by reserve forces, and the two forces were split up. Taiken was slain at the hands of Ono Masuto, who thereafter claimed Torres-Cofresi’s title ‘Kenpachi’. No decisive victory was found, and so both sides retreated, not wishing to damage Rukongai (especially around the iconic symbol of Kanda, Dirge Melian’s vicious legacy). An unspoken ceasefire was formed between the two groups as they re-evaluated what they were fighting for. However, before any peace agreement could be found, La Lluvia struck agains, with far more fury. Faust infiltrated Seireitei with a small group and disabled the Bloodstone wall, letting La Lluvia pour in from any side. The loyalists, unable to press outwards, withdrew inwards, and found themselves fighting La Lluvia members jumping out of the sewer systems. It was this powerful strike that ended the rebellion with the bloodiest end imaginable. Shouyuu Yasougin was wounded after killing Ono Masuto, who revealed himself as a Vizard, and was found dead a week later. The Captain of the 8th Division, Zalin Venkar, was killed by Faust’s subordinate Louhi. Louhi Ilpotar was killed by a Vizard, according to reports, around the same time Jinsoku disappeared (his body has yet to be recovered for analysis). Faust and Kuragari dueled on the steps of the Central 46 plaza, where Kuragari was revealed a Vizard and retreated. Muramatsu also revealed himself a Vizard, and ignored a retreat order (many believe he lost control of his Hollow); Faust killed him and threw his corpse on the floor of the Central 46 Assembly Room, speaking words that were hastily recorded by a mere meeting scribe; “Where is the purity of this Court of Souls? Here it lies.” The pun in Faust’s words was not lost; all rebels were immediately exonerated and a ceasefire order was given. Many Captains, however, left the service; Yazama and Hiana left, Idaten Takero (Captain of the 7th Division) retired, as did the Vice Captain of the 13th Division. Iwakami Katsu and Chikako Sayuri left the service out of disgust, pinning their bloody haoris to the door of the Central 46. The Mask War itself was the act of Faust, who single-handedly unraveled a plan by the Vizards to assume control of the Gotei. During the shifting political climate, many Vizards infiltrated the Central 46 and became Assemblymen and Judges. Additionally, Ono and Muramatsu gained prominent spots of power with their Captains killed; Kuragari Seisatsu was called in when the well-orchestrated plan had gone awry with Faust’s rebellion. While urban legend declares that Faust is a hero and he knew about the plot the whole time, common sense dictates not. Research done shows that Faust interrogated a criminal shortly before attending the emergency session of the Central 46, whose identity is only recorded as ‘Codename: Snowflake’, and after this interrogation he seemed startled. This ‘startled’ expression was viewed after the meeting itself, and a few living subordinates detail Faust staying up all night, trying to connect pieces of information from old surveillance reports stolen from the Central 46 as part of La lluvia’s first attack. Faust was appointed Soutaichou and formally recognized by the Central 46 as a hero; it was clear that the Soutaichou had little care for the title ‘hero’, reportedly slandering the title in private. Aftermath And it is in the Aftermath of the Mask War that the current era takes place. Faust has successfully rebuilt the Gotei, appointing Captains to the majority of the Divisions. While it lacks the supreme power of the Golden Age of Masaru, the state of the Gotei has been exponentially increasing as of late. It is the hope of this author that a second Index, detailing another Age of Turmoil, may never need be written. Category:History Category:Shinigami Category:Vizard